Mayor wants action on FOCO before someone 'gets killed'
Ed Holder calls on Western to work quickly with police and the city to make sure there isn't a repeat
London Mayor Ed Holder has come down on Western University for not moving fast enough to deal with out of control partying at the so-called Fake Homecoming celebrations.
Holder said at a committee meeting Wednesday that he's running out of patience with Western's slow response to the issue.
"There will be blood on all of our hands .. because people are being stupid, or are being encouraged by others to be stupid."
FOCO, or fake homecoming, began two years ago, when the university moved its annual homecoming celebrations from late September to mid-October.
The administration said at the time the aim was "to address a variety of concerns associated with the unsanctioned and unsupervised street party that has taken place in recent years on homecoming weekend."
But the plan backfired. Last year, police released aerial footage of the party showing thousands of revellers packed onto sides streets around the university and spilling onto Richmond.
Students explain the party is so legendary that people will fly from all corners of the country just to be there.
"Last year, dozens of young people were injured and one person in particular was seriously injured by jumping off a roof," Holder said. "It's only a matter of time before someone gets killed."
Holder said there's an obligation on all parties including police and emergency services to act, but he says the administration at Western in particular has to take action.
"There are two parts to this," Holder said. "One is strong communications using social media. The second part is academic sanctions as well as penalties associated with breaking the law."
Schools strategize
Western University has been meeting with other post-secondary institutions across the province to discuss street parties. Nine schools, including Carleton, Guelph and the University of Ottawa met at Laurier last week to strategize.
They agreed to hold all homecoming football games over two weekends this fall in a bid to curb unsanctioned student parties.
In London, the mayor said he intends to use his position on the school's board of governors to influence change. He also notes that City Manager Martin Hayward is part of a "high level committee" working to deal with the issue.